CHENNAI: Soon after returning from a tour of her Srirangam constituency, Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Wednesday ordered a commission of inquiry to look into the construction of the New Secretariat by the previous DMK regime. The one-man commission will comprise S Thangaraj, a retired judge of the Madras High Court.The Commission has been asked to submit its report to the government in three months. It would also inquire whether there was any lapse or abuse of position on the part of government officials or public servants. The Commission would “inquire into the causes and circumstances leading to the alleged irregularities like excess expenditure, irregularities causing loss to the exchequer, whether all statutory approvals and clearances were obtained, inordinate delay and deficiency in standards in the construction of the New Secretariat Complex,” said GO No 530.The Commission has been asked to make appropriate recommendations and suggest suitable ways and means to prevent such occurrences in the future, if the allegations are found to be true.The constitution of the Commission is the latest move in a slugfest between the government and former CM M Karunanidhi, over the Secretariat. Even before the polls, the AIADMK had hinted that it would not function out of the new building.On June 19, Karunanidhi written in his party mouthpiece Murasoli, that the DMK government had only been completing the relocation process that had been initiated by the previous Jayalalithaa regime. Karunanidhi, who was on his way back to Chennai, had not reacted to the GO by Wednesday evening. He had been to New Delhi visiting his daughter Kanimozhi who is currently lodged in Tihar Jail.
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